The Kids Aren't Alright
by Sheena Is A Punk Rocker
Summary: Formerly Untitled. New year at JKPMS w Loomer's little sister now at the school. Secrets about their past reveal why Loomer is the way he is. MozeLoomer. Read and Review! Rated for Emily, Moze, and Billy's mouths...
1. Start of a New School Year

NDSSG

It was the first day of a new school year for the kids at James K. Polk Middle School and for Ned and his friends that meant being in eighth grade.

Billy Loomer walked into the school building looking the same as last year, without the leather jacket… except now, someone followed him. It was a girl about Ned Bigby's height minus a few inches, with black shoulder length hair in pigtails, dark blue eyes, wearing black jeans, a white long sleeved shirt with a black short-sleeved Adeline Street shirt over it, and traditional black and white beat up Converse All-Star Chuck Taylor high-tops. She was wearing eyeliner and mascara. This was Billy's little sister, Emily.

Emily was starting her 1st year at JKPMS as a 6th grader and she was a little nervous. She looked up at her older brother and asked, "Hey Billy? Is middle school hard?"

Billy looked down at her, "Yeah. You get tons of homework…" Billy went on and on, making up a huge list of why middle school's hard. Emily rolled her eyes and kicked her brother in the shin.

Emily followed Billy to the front office and got her locker number and combination and her schedule. Billy looked at all of this and then told Emily to follow him.

Emily's locker was next to someone's that had a wooden door. And that person walked to her locker a second later. Billy grinned and said, "Hi Jennifer." He had the dreamy look on his face.

She looked up and said, "Hi Loomer." She noticed Emily and asked, "Who's this?"

Billy didn't answer. He was still staring at Jennifer. So, Emily said with a smile, "I'm his sister, Emily."

Jennifer smiled at Emily and said, "Hi. I'm Jennifer." She stuck her hand out.

Emily shook Jennifer's hand and said, "Nice to meet you." Then looked up at Billy and stood on tiptoe and slapped him upside the head. Yeah, she's that short.

Billy rubbed the back of his head and said, "Um. Jennifer, would you mind showing Emily around the school."

"Only if you swear not to bully Ned and Cookie for a week."

"Deal."

"Let's have Claire write up a contract," Jennifer said just in case.

Just then Claire Sawyer future lawyer showed up with the contract and said a whole bunch of stuff. Emily didn't listen to a single word. Finally when that was done, Loomer said, "See you later loser," he said to his sister. She stuck her tongue out at him.

Jennifer said, "Let's wait for Cookie and Ned and then we'll all show you around."

"Cool. So, what's James K. Polk like?"

"Weird. And look out for the weasel."

"Weasel?"

Just then Gordy came running around the corner with a net. "I'll catch that weasel this year!"

Right as he turned another corner, the weasel came out of a door and ran away.

Emily turned back to Jennifer, "That's 1 rad weasel!"

Just then 2 guys walked up to Emily and Jennifer. "Hey Moze!" The shorter 1 said. The other 1 was playing with his glasses… or that's what it looked like anyway. He was really changing the school lunch menu.

"Hey Ned!" Jennifer said. "Meet my new friend, Emily. She's a 6th grader here." She turned to Emily. "Me, Ned, and Cookie are all writing this school survival guide so you can ask Ned for tips."

Ned shook Emily's hand. "That's Cookie over there. He's part-cyborg!"

Jennifer. "Correction: He thinks he is."

Just then the 1st bell rang. Emily asked, "Hey, can someone tell me where my 1st class is?"

Ned looked at her schedule. "3 doors down on your right."

Emily nodded. "Thanks."

Emily managed to find all her classes and then at lunch, she sat down at the table Ned was sitting at. She had packed her lunch.

Ned smiled at her. "So, how do you like the school so far?"

"It's weird. And is Mr. Monroe… you know."

Ned looked over at Mr. Monroe in the back of the cafeteria, turned back to Emily and said, "We're not sure yet. But he's a good teacher." Emily had to agree.

Ned and Emily talked about a lot of stuff. And just then Billy, Crony, and Buzz walked past the table. Billy said, "Hey loser!" to Ned. And Crony and Buzz laughed. Billy slapped Ned upside the head.

Emily stuck her tongue out at Billy and said, "Billy shut up! And Crony, are you still in the sewing club?" She smirked.

"I'm not in the sewing club," Crony lied… badly. Buzz and Billy were too stupid to figure out that he was lying. Well, Billy knew but pretended not to.

Emily said, "Leave us alone you idiots!"

Billy, Buzz, and Crony walked away. Crony glared at her before walking away though.

Ned turned to her in disbelief. Just then Jennifer and Cookie sat down. Ned said, "She got Loomer and his buddies to go away! They didn't even try to hurt her!"

Emily looked at him, "Well, I _am _Billy's sister."

Cookie and Ned stared at her, mouths open. And then at the same time said, "Please don't hurt us!"

Emily laughed. "I'm nothing like my brother except that we like the same music and have the same style. And I only hurt people when they piss me off…" She smiled. "Plus, Billy can actually be really nice. But that's really rare."

Just then Billy came and sat next to Emily. "Don't tell mom but I got another detention."

Emily groaned. "Again?"

"Yeah. Don't tell mom." Billy was already grounded for a month.

"Find. I won't tell."

Billy grinned and hugged Emily.

Emily made a face but hugged Billy back. He got up and left. Emily said, "Ned, Jennifer, Cookie, you're gonna have to get used to calling my brother by his first name now… since there's 2 Loomer's now."

Ned asked, "Billy?"

"Yep. Sometimes I call him Billie Joe. But only I'm allowed to call him that. And I only call him that to annoy him."

Ned said, "I could get used to that."

Ned, Moze, and Cookie spent the rest of lunch telling Emily about James K. Polk.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything except the character, Emily. I don't know who owns the rest.

A/N: I literally just thought up this idea one day. So, if it sucks, let me know how to improve it. And review! PLEASE!


	2. Secrets Revealed

SECRETS

Emily walked into school the next day. Billy was on his way to school because their mom was driving him so she could yell at him about the detention. Yep, she found out.

It was raining and Emily was wearing a long-sleeved vintage Donnas shirt, with another short sleeved green Overcast Kid shirt over it, a black Donnaholics hoodie, a green Green Day trucker hat with her hood up over it, black skinny jeans, a studded belt, and her black Converse with black and white vintage Donnas shoelaces in one shoe and Green Day shoelaces in the other. Oh and of course her mom forced her to wear her raincoat. As soon as she got inside the school she took it off though. She walked to her locker, opened it, and stuffed her raincoat in to it.

Jennifer walked up to her. "Wow. You must love all those bands!"

"I'm an official Donnaholic, member of the Idiot Club and the Silence Alliance, and I'm an Overcast Kid!" Emily said proudly and showed Jennifer her membership cards. She saw Vice Principal Krubbs come around the corner and pulled her hood down and took her hat off. She shoved her hat into her locker as well. She turned back to Jennifer. "But as of now, we need to talk about you and my brother."

"What's there to talk about?"

"He's been in love with you for the past 2 years. Even when he was dating Suzie. Even when he was cheating on Suzie with Missy."

"And your point?"

"You still hate Billy. I know he's a bully but he knows when he goes too far. He'd never do anything like put someone in the hospital or anything else like that. Plus, I could easily beat him up."

"But I hate bullies! And I was 1 for a while. It wasn't good."

"Well Billy doesn't bully you or any of your friends besides Ned and Cookie does he? Does he bother Lisa?" Emily had already met Lisa because they were in the same homeroom with Ned and Coconut Head (A/N: I don't know about you guys but at my school, they combine 6th, 7th, and 8th, graders for homeroom).

Jennifer thought about that. "Well, no."

Emily looked around her before whispering, "Do you know why Billy's the way he is?"

Jennifer shook her head.

Emily looked around again and checked her watch. They still had another ½ hour until school started. She always got there really early. So did Jennifer. Emily said, "We need to talk somewhere else."

Jennifer said, "Gordy will probably let us use his janitor's closet." Emily followed Jennifer to where Gordy was. Jennifer talked to him and then he left so the two girls could talk.

Emily closed the door and then sat down on the floor. Jennifer sat down next to her. "What'd you need to tell me?"

Emily looked at Jennifer, "The reason Billy's the way he is all has to do with our dad." She sighed.

"What about your dad?"

"He's in prison. He was a drug dealer and we never knew until he got arrested. I was 9 and Billy was 11. It was at the end of 5th grade for him. I was in 3rd grade. Our neighbors started spreading rumors and by the time Billy came to Polk, everyone was saying a bunch of stuff about him and the only way he could think of to make it all stop was to become a bully. I've had similar problems since 4th grade."

Jennifer gasped. "Seriously?"

Emily nodded. "But you can't tell anyone! The only people that know are Buzz and Crony!"

Jennifer said, "Of course I won't tell anyone!"

Emily looked at a hole in her hoodie. "Shit!" She cursed. "Not again!" She looked at Jennifer. "Sorry. I gotta go get Crony to fix this before school."

"I'll come with you."

"Cool." Emily got up and walked out of Gordy's janitor closet. She found the sewing club room easily. And as usual, Crony was there. Emily took her hoodie off and handed it to Crony. "I need that hole fixed before school starts. I'm freezing!"

Crony got right to work. The hole was sewn up in a minute. Crony handed the hoodie back. "You'd better not tell anyone I'm in the sewing club!"

Emily rolled her eyes and pulled the hoodie on over her head. "I won't, Crony! I never have!"

Crony smiled at her, "Thanks."

The bell rang and Emily and Jennifer raced off to class.

Emily sat in the back of her first period science class with Mr. Sweeney. So, she fell asleep as he lectured the class about being tardy… and never got caught as she was taught by the best, her brother.

Emily was fully awake sometime around third period, history. After the bell rang, she headed over to PE… but not before seeing Cookie and his mop bucket slingshot down another hall. She shook her head and then ran to PE.

Since she was in 6th grade, she and her classmates didn't have to wear uniforms yet. Dirga was still explaining everything that would be expected of them that year. The class when by slowly and finally it was time for homeroom. She walked into the classroom and saw Ned sitting with Lisa and Coconut Head. She sat next to Ned and got out her history homework. She said, "Hey Ned. What's up?"

Ned was looking at Suzie and said, "I'm gonna ask Suzie out!"

Emily looked from Suzie to Ned and back again. She turned back to Ned and patted him on the shoulder. "Good luck with that."

The next bell finally rang, signaling lunch. Emily sat down where Jennifer was and took out her lunch. She was about to bite into her sandwich when she noticed that Jennifer didn't even have a lunch and looked deep in thought. Emily asked, "Hey Jennifer. You ok?"

Jennifer jumped and said, "Oh sorry. I'm just thinking."

"Are you buying lunch?"

"Yeah I'm just waiting for the line to go down."

"So, whatcha thinking about?"

Jennifer said, "Uh. Nothing important."

"Oh c'mon! It has to be _something_!"

Jennifer sighed, "Ok fine. After you told me what you told me this morning, I've been thinking. I mean, Loomer, sorry, Billy, _has_ been really nice to me in the past." Jennifer thought some more. "And he wrote me those love notes. They were kinda sappy but sweet."

Emily grinned. "So…?"

Jennifer finally blurted out, "I think I might actually like your brother!"

"Finally you admit it."

"Yeah…" Jennifer got up and got in line. Emily got up to talk to her brother.

She ran to the table. "Billy! Billy, Billy, Billy, Billy!" she said really fast.

He grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her while saying, "What!? Calm down!"

"Jennifer might actually wanna go out with you."

"Can you ask her for me?" Billy asked his sister.

"What's in it for me?"

"5 bucks."

"Deal."

Billy handed Emily 5 dollars and she walked up to Jennifer, who had gotten her lunch and was sitting with Ned and Cookie now. She said, "Um. Jennifer? My brother wants to know if you'd go out with him."

Jennifer smiled and looked over at Billy's table, where he was looking at her with a smile. She looked back at Emily and said, "Tell him I said yes."

Emily said, "Seriously?"

Ned and Cookie were looking at Jennifer horrified. "Yeah, seriously?"

"Yes."

Emily ran back to Billy's table and said something to him. He came over to Jennifer's table and sat next to her. "Hi Jennifer."

"Hi Billy," Jennifer replied.

"So, um… my sister told you about our dad, didn't she?"

"Yeah and it makes a lot more sense now as to why you're a bully."

Ned and Cookie were looking at their worst enemy and their best friend talking to each other. Ned looked at Cookie and said, "This is bad."

A/N: So, what do you guys think? REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!! And yes, finally it's turning into a Moze/Loomer.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own NDSSG… or any of the bands or fan clubs mentioned. I only obsess over the bands…


	3. The Date

**(Moze's POV)**

Loomer, sorry, Billy, and I went to the mall together on Saturday and saw a movie. Of course, I wasn't exactly concentrating on the movie because Billy had his arm around me. It's amazing how differently I see him now. I don't see him as a bully anymore. It's weird how different a person can seem when you find out their story.

Anyways, Billy and I were seeing a horror movie, all blood and gore. It was the crappiest movie I'd ever seen and I found myself laughing uncontrollably by the first two minutes.

"This movie is so fake!" Billy complained. I could tell he was trying not to laugh but pretty soon he was cracking up with me. That's when he put his arm around me, which is when I couldn't concentrate anymore. I still found myself laughing when he did though.

We left the theater so we wouldn't annoy anyone (I could tell we were getting a lot of glares. Plus, people were shushing us) and went theater hopping. The next movie we picked was a lot better. Billy still had his arm around me and I had my head on his shoulder. He really was a sweet guy. Why had I rejected him all those years? I don't think it really had anything to do with him bullying Ned and Cookie because now that I think about it, I've treated them the same way more than a few times. I guess I just figured that Billy was too immature to be a good boyfriend...

"What are you thinking about?" I heard Billy whisper in my ear and I snapped out of my daze. The movie was over.

"Oh nothing. Ready to go?"

We left the theater and started walking to my house. I live half an hour away walking distance from the mall.

We were silent for the first five minutes, walking hand and hand. I looked at my watch, it was around six o'clock and the sun still hadn't set.

Billy looked at me. "Jennifer?"

"What?"

"When do your parents expect you to be home?"

"My mom's actually visiting friends this whole weekend and my dad's on a business trip. So, I'm home alone."

Billy smiled. "Perfect. I wanna show you something."

We started walking in the opposite direction back to the mall. "Where are we going?" I asked, confused.

"Just wait. I go here all the time. You'll like it."

I trusted him, even though I had know idea where the hell we were going.

We walked back into the mall and Billy led the way through an 'employees only sign', all the way up to the mall roof. "We shouldn't be here," I protested nervously. What if someone caught us. I pulled my hand away from his.

Billy laughed. "Like I said, I come up here a lot. No one cares."

"If you're sure about that." I muttered.

He grinned at me. "I'm sure. Now, stop worrying." He grabbed my hand again and led me to the edge of the roof. I looked down and gasped. It was amazing! We were so high up and I could see everything.

Billy wrapped his arms around my waist from behind and rested his chin on my shoulder. "Amazing, isn't it?"

I could only nod. I was stunned.

Billy laughed softly and said. "I know the view is awesome but that's not what I wanted to show you."

"What _did_ you want to show me?"

"The sun's about to set," he whispered quietly in my ear.

I tore my eyes away from the streets below and looked up beyond the buildings surrounding the mall. The sun _was_ setting. It was unlike anything I'd ever seen before. "It's beautiful," I breathed.

"I thought you'd appreciate this. No one else would."

I turned in his arms to look into his eyes. "I do appreciate all this, Billy. Thanks. I've had a really great time today."

"Me too."

He leaned in a little until our noses were touching. My heart starting beating faster. I closed my eyes and tilted my head slightly pressed my lips against his.

That first kiss was amazing! The fireworks were actually there this time, which had never happened with any boyfriend I'd ever had, or Ned for that matter.

We broke apart and looked at each other. "Wow." was all I said.

"I've always wanted to do that," Billy said quietly.

"I never pictured you as being a good kisser," I teased.

He laughed quietly. "I should probably get you home. It's already dark."

I leaned my head on his shoulder and whispered, "I don't wanna go home yet."

His arms tightened around me and he kissed my neck. "Fine by me."

We stayed like that for I don't even know how long. It could have been minutes, hours, or even days and I wouldn't have noticed.

Eventually Billy sighed and said quietly, "I really should get you home. It's almost seven thirty."

"Fine. I guess I'm ready to go home, as long as you stay for a little while."

"I will. I have a midnight curfew on weekends anyways."

I pulled away from him and stared at him in disbelief. "Are you serious?"

He laughed. "Yeah. My mom doesn't give me and Emmy many restrictions. She only gets mad when we get in trouble and 'grounds' us." He made air quotes when he said 'grounds'. "She normally forgets she grounded one of us to begin with and the other always makes sure not to remind her. She trusts us."

"I wish my parents were like that."

"What _are_ your parents like?"

"They barely trust me. They almost hired a sitter for me this weekend because they think I'm gonna go out and do drugs or get drunk or throw a party!"

"That's harsh."

"No shit. And they're always putting pressure on me. I always have to get As or I'm not good enough. I'm volunteering at the nursing home, taking tap dance, volleyball, doing homework, and a whole bunch more crap! Everyone thinks I _like_ doing all that shit. I _hate_ it! My parents won't let me quit anything, which is why I'm so obsessive-compulsive when it comes to organization because without it, I would be failing every single class! If I could quit even one thing, my life would be so much easier but my parents never listen." I couldn't stop ranting. "They get mad at me if I forget something and I haven't had a good night's sleep in weeks and please stop me if I'm boring you to death."

He hugged me. "No it's okay. I understand. You're parents are being way too heavy-handed. You don't deserve all that stress."

"Sometimes the stress gets so bad that I've actually thought about running away or cutting myself," I admitted.

He pulled away from me and looked me in the eye. "Cutting never solves anything! I would know. Don't ever resort to that."

"Wait. You used to cut yourself?"

"Yeah." He looked down. "After my dad got arrested."

It was my turn to hug him.

"Well, as I was saying, don't ever resort to cutting. If you have to, run away. You can always come to my house."

"Thanks Billy. I'll remember that."

We started walking back to my house. We talked about our families, our friends, everything and anything we could think of. I talked a lot more about my parents. It was great to be able to talk to someone that actually listened.

Billy made a suggestion. "Why don't you just quit something? I mean, without telling your parents. You could stop going to tap dance or something and your parents couldn't do anything about it."

I thought about it. "I might just actually do that."

We stopped at my house's front door and I unlocked it and let Billy in. I walked into the living room and collapsed on the couch. Billy sat next to me and looped his arm around my waist. I curled up to his side. He looked down at me. "Wanna talk some more?"

I shook my head. "Not really. I just wanna sit here."

"Okay then."

We sat there on the couch in silence for awhile, the only sound I heard was Billy's breathing. I smiled, content, until I looked out the window.

It was Ned and Cookie... and they were spying on me and Billy! I jumped off the couch and opened the window. "What the hell do you think you're doing!?" I screamed at them.

Cookie ran for it while Ned just stood there, glued to the spot in fear. Billy came up behind me. "Why _are_ you here, Bigby?" It wasn't an accusation like my statement had been. It was merely a question. Billy really _was_ trying to be nicer to my friends. Impressive.

"Cookie and I just _happened _to be walking past your house, Moze, 'cause you know, I'm your neighbor, and we decided to check in on you," Ned said with that stupid smile he always got on his face whenever he had some lame excuse to give to someone.

"You call that _checking in on me_!? Are you serious?" I was pissed now. "Spying on me is more like it!"

"I'm sorry Moze!"

I shook my head. "I'll deal with you at school, where Emily will be my witness when I say I killed you in self-defense!"

Ned ran for it. I closed the window and shook my head. "First my parents don't trust me and now my own best friend? Is there something wrong with that?"

Billy wrapped his arms around me and gave me a quick peck on the lips. "Yeah. There is something wrong with that. I could take care of him for you."

"No. It's okay. I'll kick his sorry ass on Monday." I was wondering why I was this angry. It's not like this is the first time Ned and Cookie have done something like this.

Billy looked at me. "Something's bothering you. I can tell. You don't normally get this pissed at Bigby. Wanna talk about it."

I sighed. "I guess it just hits too close to home, you know? I mean, he's my best friend! Not my dad! I don't need him 'checking up on me'"

"Yeah. He shouldn't have been spying on you. I guess he still doesn't trust me yet."

"Well he should. You're a really sweet guy, Billy. And you're a great listener."

"Glad to help," he said with a grin. "I'm always here if you need to talk."

We sat back down on the couch and I turned the TV on. I started flipping through the channels. There was nothing good on. I stopped at the Food Network because there wasn't anything better on. I must have fallen asleep because the next thing I knew, Billy was carrying me upstairs.

I looked up at him and said sleepily, "Did I fall asleep?"

"Yeah you did. Can you walk straight?"

I smiled. "Yeah I can. Put me down."

He set me down carefully and I walked the rest of the way to my room. He waited while I changed into my pajamas and brushed my teeth and everything. I came back into my room and saw him sitting in my desk chair. "Well, I guess you have to go now," I said.

"Yeah I guess I should." He stood up and wrapped his arms around my waist. "I had a really great time tonight, Jennifer."

I leaned up and kissed him. "I had a great time too, Billy. I'll see you on Monday."

"See you Monday." He kissed me this time. "Night."

"Night." I finally let go of him and climbed into bed. He opened the door to my room and turned back to smile at me one last time. "I love you."

I smiled back. "I love you too." I shocked even myself. But it was true. In the last who knows how many hours, I had fallen in love with Billy Loomer.

"I left my number on your desk. Call me tomorrow."

"I will."

"Bye." He left my room, closing the door behind him quietly.

I lay my head on my pillow and smiled. That had to be _the_ best night of my life! I couldn't wait until Monday.

**A/N**: Ok then, here's chapter 3. Lots and lots of Moze/Loomer fluff! Hope you guys liked it. Sorry it took me so long to update. I had to start a completely new document and this was actually not what I intended for chapter 3. But HannaDoo wanted to know how the date went so I decided to write about it. Read/Review!

**DISCLAIMER**: I don't own NDSSG or the Food Network. And I kinda sorta got the idea for Ned and Cookie spying on Moze from HannaDoo (I hope you don't mind) but I was sure to make it a lot different.


	4. HeroHeroine

**(Billy's POV)**

That date was... amazing. I'd always dreamed of the day when Jennifer would finally go out with me, but I never pictured it to be that amazingly amazing.

I walked through the front door of my family's tiny one-story, three bedroom house. No one from school has ever been inside my house, not even Buzz or Crony. It's too embarrassing. Everyone else's houses' are big and at least two stories.

Emmy looked up from where she'd been watching TV. "So? How was it?"

"Amazing," I said, sitting on the couch next to her. I did a double take. "Did you dye your hair _again_?" Her hair was currently dark purple. She was constantly dying it.

"Yeah," she said. "So...? What happened?"

I told her everything that had happened on the date, going up to the mall roof, watching the sunset, everything. My sister's the only person besides Jennifer who's seen the real me. The sweet and caring me.

Emily said, "Awww! That's _so_ cute!"

"Yeah. Where's mom?" I asked. The question slipped out automatically. I ask it every night, even though I already know the answer.

"She has a double shift at work today."

Our mom works really hard but doesn't make much money. After our dad got arrested, everything went downhill. Suddenly, our mom had to find another job to pay the bills and now we never see her.

"Oh," I said in response to Emmy's answer. I looked at the clock. It was already ten thirty. "It's late. Time for bed kiddo."

"But I'm not sleepy," Emily protested. "I had like a ton of Mountain Dew earlier!"

"That can't be good." I think for a minute. "Well, it _is_ a weekend so I guess I'll let you stay up a little later. But get ready for bed first."

She already knew that was what my answer was going to be. She put her pajamas on and brushed her teeth before sitting back on the couch. Sometime around eleven forty-five, the TV was still on and Emmy was asleep with her head resting in my lap. I moveed her head gently and stood up before picking her up and carrying her to her room. I tucked her in carefully and put her headphones over her ears and pressed play on her CD player. She listens to music while she sleeps, don't ask why. Tonight it was Boys Like Girls.

After I did all that, I kissed my sister's forehead and whispered, "Night Em," before tiptoeing out of her room, turning off the lights, and closing the door gently behind me.

I went to my own room and collapsed on the bed, staring at the ceiling. I was too ecstatic to sleep. I decided to listen to music. I got my CD player out of my backpack and put my headphones over my ears. I hit play without even checking to see which CD was in it. I fell back on my bed and listened.

It turned out to be _Kerplunk_, Green Day's second album before_Dookie_ came out. The first song, "2,000 Light Years Away", described exactly what I was feeling. Billie wrote it after his first kiss with Adrienne, his wife. I just had my first kiss with Jennifer.

I started singing along quietly.

_I sit alone in my bedroom_

_Staring at the walls_

_I've been up all damn night long_

_My pulse is speeding_

_My love is yearning_

_____I hold my breath and close me eyes and..._

_____Dream about her_

_____'Cause she's 2000 light years away_

_____She holds my malachite so tight so..._

_____Never let go_

_____'Cause she's 2000 light years away_

_____Years away_

Sometime during the song, I actually did close my eyes and picture Jennifer. I smiled at the thought of her laughter and how her big, brown eyes lit up when she was happy.

_____I sit outside and watch the sunrise_

_____Look out as far as I can_

_____I can't see her but in the distance_

_____I hear some laughter_

_____We laugh together_

That seemed like a good idea, sitting on the roof, watching the sunrise. I should do that with Jennifer one of these days. I thought about it. I'd have my arm around her waist, she'd have her head on my shoulder. Her eyes would light up at the sight of the sunrise, I would be watching her. Then she'd turn her head and see me watching, and she'd laugh. I would join in with her laughter and kiss her, and she'd kiss me back...

Yeah, it'd be perfect. The song had ended by now and I turned off my CD player. Then, still wearing the jeans and t-shirt I wore on the date, I drifted off to sleep.

I woke up to my cell phone's ringtone. "Hey, you can't even find your phone!" It's one of those Green Day ringtones. I picked it up before Mike Dirnt could get to, "Responsibility, over here. Responsibility. Ring! Pick up the phone! It's your mother!"

"Hello?" I said sleepily.

"Billy? Oh my god. I woke you up, didn't I? I'm so sorry. I'll just call back later." Jennifer was talking a mile a minute.

I cut her off. "It's okay, Jennifer. I'm awake. What's up?"

"Well, my mom's home early and we got into this huge fight about me quitting tap dance and now she won't talk to me and I'm having a really shitty day. Can I come over?" She sounded really depressed.

I didn't hesitate. "Of course! You know that liquor store by your house?"

"Yeah," She said.

"I'll meet you there. We can walk to my house and talk on the way if you want." I didn't mind letting Jennifer see my house.

"Sounds great. Thanks. Bye."

"Bye. See you in a bit."

"Love you."

"Love you too."

We hung up and I checked the time on my cell phone. It was already two o' clock! "Damn. I slept late," I murmured. I was surprised Emily didn't wake me up like she normally does by running into my room with a metal pot and banging on it right next to my ear.

I changed my shirt and grabbed a hoodie before leaving my room. Emmy was on the computer. "You slept late," she commented without turning around.

"Yeah. Why didn't you wake me up like you normally do? Not that I'm complaining. I'm just wondering."

"Decided to be nice for a change," she said.

"Right. You? Nice?" I laughed.

"I'm too lazy to kick your ass now."

"Ok well, I'm gonna go meet Jennifer somewhere."

"Did something happen?"

"She got into a fight with her mom and I told her she could come here."

"Okay. See you later."

I walked out the door and over to the liquor store by Jennifer's house.

She was waiting near the door, fidgeting with the hem of her shirt. She looked up when I came in and threw her arms around my neck. "Thanks for coming."

I wrapped my arms around her waist and said, "Any time. C'mon. Let's get going."

We started walking to my house, my arm around her waist the whole time. We didn't talk, just walked in silence. We made it to my house in minutes.

"Are you okay, Jennifer?" Em asked as soon as we walked through the door.

"Yeah. Just upset," she replied. "Thanks for asking."

"Lemme know if you need to have a girl talk."

Jennifer smiled. "I will."

I tightened my grip on her waist and grinned. "Sorry Em. She's taken."

"You stole my line, bitch!"

Jennifer was laughing now. "Thanks guys. I feel a little better now."

I kissed her cheek. "Glad to help." I took her hand and led her to my room, praying that it was at least clean. It turns out Emily had dumped my clean laundry on the floor, which included my underwear. I smacked my forehead with the palm of my hand in frustration, dragged Jennifer out quickly, told Emily, "I'm gonna get you, midget," and then cleaned up my clothes. Then I led Jennifer back into my room.

We sat down on my bed. After a minute of silence, I put my hand on her back and asked, "Wanna talk?"

She shook her head and then rested it on my shoulder. "Thanks for asking though."

I pulled her into my lap and wrapped my arms tightly around her waist. She smiled and kissed me before leaning her head on my shoulder again.

I found myself singing softly, "Do you ever feel like breaking down? Do You ever feel out of place? Like somehow you just don't belong. And no one understands you."

Jennifer looked at me. "You're a really good singer, you know that?"

"I am?"

"Yeah. You are. Keep singing."

I picked a different song. This one was Boys Like Girls. And it was the perfect song to let me express my feelings for Jennifer.

_____It's too late baby, there's no turning around  
I got my hands in my pocket and my head in a cloud  
This is how I do  
When I think about you  
I never thought that you could break me apart  
I keep a sinister smile and a hole in my heart  
You want to get inside  
Then you can get in line  
But not this time_

I first noticed Jennifer in the sixth grade. At first, I only liked her 'cause I thought she was pretty. But by the end of sixth grade, I found myself falling in love with the sound of her voice and laughter, her smile, her big, beautiful, chocolate brown eyes... everything about her. I wasn't used to a girl having this affect on me.

_____Cause you caught me off guard  
Now I'm running and screaming_

She definitely caught me off guard. I normally went out with girls like Missy. Not that I actually liked them... but those were the kinds of girls who actually liked me. And the reason I went out with any of them was peer pressure. Being the bad ass meant going out with bitches like Missy and Suzie. But I knew that I was in love with Jennifer but I couldn't get myself to open up to her, to let her see the real me. Whenever we'd get to a point when I was comfortable with being me around her, Crony and Buzz would come along and ruin it just by being there. They'd never seen the real me and probably never will... until Monday that is.

_____  
I feel like a hero and you are my heroine_

Being with Jennifer gives me the confidence to let people see the real me. That's why she always will be my heroine. And being the only person she can feel comfortable talking to, I _do_ feel like a hero.

_____  
I won't try to philosophize  
I'll just take a deep breath then I'll look in your eyes  
This is how I feel  
And it's so surreal  
I got a closet filled up to the brim  
With the ghosts of my past and their skeletons  
And I don't know why  
You'd even try  
But I won't lie_

I'd always believed that if word ever got out about my past and my family, Jennifer would never like me. I come from a broken home. There were too many secrets. I never thought she'd like me if she knew that my dad was a drug dealer. I figured she'd jump to conclusions, just like my teachers did, because Crubbs had to open his big mouth and tell the whole fucking teaching staff about my family! That's another part of the reason why I'm the "bad ass bully" at school. My teachers treated me like I was the drug dealer and eventually I just stopped trying to prove them wrong and fell into the position as the school bully.

_____I feel like a hero and you are my heroine_

_____ Do you know that your love is the sweetest sin?_

People would say that Jennifer and I don't belong together: we're too different, I'm too bad ass-y for her, she's actually a good student.

It's kind of ironic actually. I'm actually a B average student mostly. Everyone just assumes I fail at everything. And because Jennifer's known as the good student, everyone, Bigby especially, assumes that we'd never work together. She'd be too "smart" for me.

_____  
And I feel a weakness coming on  
It never felt so good to be so wrong  
Had my heart on lockdown  
And then you turned me around  
And I'm feeling like a newborn child  
Every time I get a chance to see you smile  
It's not complicated  
I was so jaded_

Telling Jennifer how I feel was the best advice my sister has ever given me. I was so convinced that she'd never like me that I had just given up on trying. I've never loved anyone else.

Jennifer smiled at me while I finished the song. I love her smile. I couldn't help but smile back.

"That has got to be one of the sweetest songs I've ever heard! Who's it by?" She asked.

"Boys Like Girls."

"I should check 'em out."

"I have their CD if you wanna borrow it."

"That'd be great. So, what other bands do you listen to? I've always thought of you as that guy who liked metal."

"Nah. That's Crony and Buzz. I prefer different stuff. Mostly punk. But I also listen to a lot of emo and Indie stuff. I do listen to hardcore though."

"Such as...?"

"Green Day, Lagwagon, Bad Religion, Social Distortion, Fall Out Boy, Boys Like Girls, Scary Kids Scaring Kids, Every Time I Die, The All-American Rejects, Foo Fighters, The Donnas, yes I admit it, I listen to them."

She laughed.

"So yeah, stuff like that," I finished.

"Cool. You must have an impressive CD collection."

"Actually most of it's Emily's. Well, she gave me the CDs after putting them on her iPod."

"You play any instruments?"

"Drums. I'm saving up for a drumset. I should have enough money by my birthday."

"When is your birthday anyway?"

"August 25th."

We spent at least two hours just talking about anything and everything. She completely forgot about why she'd even come over. That is, until her cell phone rang.

She looked at the number and buried her face in my shoulder. When she spoke, her voice was muffled, but stilled audible. "Stupid bitch."

"Your mom?" I asked.

She nodded.

Her phone kept ringing. Jennifer finally got off my lap and picked it up, beginning to pace around the room. "What?" She demanded angrily. She listened for a minute. "I told you I was going out!" More listening. "No I'm not gonna be home soon! I'm sick of having to listen to you!" She frowned. "I'm pissed off, of course I'm yelling!" She listened for another minute before screaming into the phone, "Whatever! Bye!" She hung up and them screamed.

I stood up and wrapped my arms around her. I started stroking her hair, trying to get her to calm down. "Shh. Shh. It's okay. Calm down."

She looked up at me, tears streaming down her face. I kissed her forehead and pulled her close to me. "It's okay now. What happened?"

"I'm just sick of this shit! She never leaves me alone." She looked up at me again, tears streaming down her face, what little makeup she had on running down her cheeks. "I just don't know what to do."

I wiped her tears away, ignoring the black eyeliner and mascara stains on my hands (I just wiped them on my jeans), and kissed her. "Talk to her. I mean, don't yell at each other."

"I can't talk to either of them. That's the problem. They never listen. I feel so alone and emotionally drained at home. And now it's like I can't even try to be happy in that house anymore. You're the only person I can talk to that'll listen!"

I didn't know what to say. I'd never had anything like that ever happen to me. I always have Emily to talk to.

Jennifer continued. She was now talking so fast that all I caught was, "I'm ugly."

"Woah. Hold on a minute. You're not ugly. You're the most beautiful girl I know!"

"Look at me! I'm ugly! These clothes aren't me at all! The reason I wear so many bright colors is because my parents refuse to let me wear black in large quantities!"

I nodded, finally understanding. "So, you're telling me that your parents control how you dress too?"

She nodded. "Yeah. And apparently they control my head too. I'm not allowed to cut my hair shorter than this!"

"That's fucked up."

"I know!"

I thought for a minute. "You know, your style is something, if anything, that you can actually rebel against your parents for control over."

"How?"

"How much money do you have?"

"Well, since I don't normally buy anything..." She thought. "Since sixth grade, all my babysitting money's totaled up to... about seven hundred dollars."

"That's perfect! Me, you, and Em are gonna go to the mall and she's gonna help you pick out a whole new wardrobe. And you can get your hair cut!"

Emily ran in at that moment. "I heard the words shopping, wardrobe, and haircut."

Jennifer laughed and said, "Yeah. You did. Looks like we're going to the mall."

"And I can help you pick out your wardrobe?" Emily was bouncing up and down. She loves shopping.

"Yep."

Emily squealed and hugged Jennifer. "Kk, just lemme change." She ran out of the room again.

Jennifer looked at me, "I can't believe you guys are helping me rebel against my parents. What am I saying? It's you!"

I laughed and hugged her. "I just want you to have some control over your life."

She looked up at me. "I love you."

I kissed the tip of her nose. "I love you too."

Emily ran back into the room wearing a different pair of skinny jeans, a white Dead Milkmen shirt, and black flats. "C'mon! Let's go!" She grabbed Jennifer's hand and pulled her out of the room with me following behind, laughing my ass off.

We stopped by Jennifer's house so she could get her money. Her mom was out, thankfully.

Before I knew it, we were in front of the mall. I looked at my girlfriend. "You ready?"

She took a deep breath. "I think so."

**A/N**: Any thoughts? Ideas? Complaints? Just click that little purple button that says "go" and send a review!

**DISCLAIMER**: I don't own NDSSG. Green Day owns the song "2000 Light Years Away" and Boys Like Girls own "Hero/Heroine"


	5. The New Moze

(Moze's POV)

I had such a good time at the mall! Emily went crazy and dragged me into every single store there was and we went insane! We tried on totally outrageous outfits that we'd normally never be caught dead in, just for fun. She helped me pick out a whole new wardrobe with a little (meaning a lot) more black than before. And Billy was surprisingly patient, even helping us pick out some clothes and giving his opinion on the fashion choices, which didn't help a whole lot. He always said I looked great.

It finally came time for me to get my haircut. Emily looked at me. "You ready?"

"I think so. How should I get it cut?"

She studied my face for a minute, thinking. "Well... I don't think you'd look good with really short hair so keep it between shoulder and chin length. And it's pretty thin, so some layers might be good. And lastly, you'd look great with sideswept bangs, like mine." She shook her head to make her bangs fall more in front of her face. They're really long and cover about half of her face, but she looks good with them. She added with a laugh, "You might wanna get 'em a little shorter than mine."

I laughed with her and then asked Billy, "Your opinion?"

He shrugged. "Emily really covered it all. All I have to say is get it cut shorter than shoulder length but longer than chin length."

"Ok, got it." I went into the salon.

I met up with Emily and Billy half an hour later to show them my hair. It looked awesome, short, but not too short, just enough to be noticeable, sideswept bangs, and layered. I smiled at them nervously. "What's the verdict?"

"It looks amazing!" Emily said.

Billy smiled at me. "I love it."

"Thanks." I smiled back.

We got some food before leaving the mall and heading back to Emily and Billy's house. Their mom was home when we got there. She was watching TV in the living room and looked up when we entered the house. I could see that Emily and Billy got most of their looks from their mom. She smiled at me and said, "Hi, you must be Jennifer. Billy and Emily have told me so much about you."

I smiled back. "Hi Mrs. Loomer. It's nice to meet you."

Emily grabbed my hand, "C'mon! Let's see how your clothes look with your new hair!" She dragged me to her room, screaming, "Hi mom! Bye mom!" over her shoulder. Billy said hi to his mother and then followed.

I modeled outfit after outfit. By the time I was done, it was already 7 o'clock! I sighed. "Shit. I gotta go really soon."

"My mom will drive you home," Emily said. "Let's pick out an outfit for you to wear tomorrow." She turned to Billy. "You. Get your ass out of here. You don't get to see 'til tomorrow."

"Aw. No fair," Billy whined.

I laughed and wrapped my arms around his neck. "Thanks for your help today."

He hugged me closer to him and kissed me. "No problem." He looked over my shoulder at Emily. She's surprisingly patient with Billy and me when we have our 'moments'. "I should probably go before Em kicks my ass." He gave me one last kiss before walking out the door.

"K, now he's gone. Let's pick out your outfit!"

I'd always been amazed at Emily's enthusiasm.

She helped me pick out a pair of dark blue skinny jeans with a studded belt, a white tank top, a black and gray print baby doll tee over that, a turquoise three-fourth sleeved cardigan with crossed guns on it over that, turquoise leopard print flats, some jelly bracelets, and a pair of guitar pick earrings.

I looked in the full-length mirror hanging on the door. "Wow. I look... different."

"Yep. And with some makeup and a flatiron, you can look like a totes cute emo girl."

"Is that good?"

"When I get you into the music, hellz yeah it will be a good thing! 'Cause then you'll be a true emo-ite." She beamed.

I laughed. "I'm ready for hair and makeup."

"K, close your eyes."

I did as I was told. I heard drawers opening and closing. In a few minutes, I heard Emily say, "Ok. Open."

My eyes fluttered open. I blinked for a second. I looked totally different. She'd put heavy black eyeliner and mascara on me and blue eyeshadow. It really accentuated my eyes.

"What do you think?" She asked, chin on my shoulder, looking at me in the mirror.

"I love it!"

"Think you can do this by yourself?"

"Yeah!"

"Hellz yeah!" She opened another drawer. "K, last thing. Do you have a flatiron at home?"

"Yeah. I don't use it though."

"You'd better start 'cause it's gonna become your new best friend."

She showed me how to straighten my bangs so that they were perfect and fell in front of my right eye slightly.

"You look gorgeous, doll face!"

I turned to look at her questioningly, "Doll face?"

"It's one of my things. I call people 'doll', 'doll face', 'gorgeous', 'darling', you get the point."

"Yeah I got it."

"I feel like I'm on some weird version of 'What Not to Wear'."

I laughed at her comment. "Thank you sooo much!"

"No problem. If it made you happy, I'm glad I was there to help. Plus you look so much cuter. That hot goth kid might notice you for a change instead of that weirdo, Jock Goldman."

"How do you know about that?" She was only a sixth grader.

"Ned."

"Figures." I rolled my eyes. "And sorry, but I don't think goth boy's cute."

"You're crazy. You know that? Although, I will admit, I've seen hotter guys before. Emos, skaters, punks, and scenesters are always hotter."

"I'll take your word for it. I don't really care anyways. I have a boyfriend now." I grinned.

Emily at school was definitely more shy and held back, I noticed. It was amazing to see the change in her when she was at home! I told her this. "I've never seen you this hyper and happy before!"

"You hadn't seen me outside of school before. I mean, it's a new school for me. I'm getting used to it most deffs, but I'm still not in my comfort zone. I'm still me, just not as hyper me. I mean, at least I talk."

"Yeah, but I think people would notice you more if you were more outgoing like you are in your comfort zone."

"Yeah I guess your right. I'll work on it."

"Glad to hear it." I decided to change the subject. "So, any cute guys you noticed yet?"

"Not yet, 'cept hot goth kid. Does anyone even know what his name is?"

"Nope."

"Seriously?"

I nodded.

"That's fucked!"

"They're not noticed very often."

"I'm gonna talk to him tomorrow."

"Good luck. He tends to hate everyone. They're all so depressed."

"That's what you think. Goths happen to be some of the nicest people on the planet!"

"If you say so."

I heard a knock on the door. "Jennifer? I think we should probably get you home, sweetie." It was Mrs. Loomer.

Emily called, "Coming mom!"

We gathered up all my bags and walked out the door. Emily hugged me before I got in the car and said, "You look gorgeous!"

"Thanks Emily." I smiled.

"Your welcome. All the guys will be speechless! Ok, I'll see you tomorrow." She gave me one last hug before going back inside the house.

Mrs. Loomer drove me home.

After thanking her a bunch of times, I went inside my house, where my mom was waiting, glaring menacingly at me. "Where the hell have you been, young lady?"

"Out. With friends."

"Cookie was at Ned's house. You weren't there. Stop lying! Where the hell were you? And what are you wearing?" She looked at me face and gasped. "Makeup? Who told you that you could wear that?"

"It's my body. I should decide what goes on it! And I have other friends besides Ned and Cookie!" I said through clenched teeth.

"I'm your mother! What I say goes! Just wait until your father hears about this."

"Leave me alone!" I stormed upstairs, slamming my bedroom door behind me and locking it.

Thankfully, she didn't come after me. I slid down to the floor, tears streaming silently down my face. I wiped the makeup off my face, wishing Billy was there to comfort me...

Someone knocked on my window. I looked up. Billy was sitting on a tree branch of the old oak tree outside my window, looking at me with concern. I got up and opened the window. I sniffed. "What are you doing here, Billy."

"Just wanted to visit you to say good night seeing as how Emily kicked me out before."

"Oh." I let him into my room and collapsed on the bed. He closed the window behind him and sat next to me on the bed, pulling me onto his lap and wrapped his arms around me.

I buried my face in his jacket and cried. "I can't do this. Whenever I do something wrong I get yelled at and I hate it!"

"Hey look at me," he said gently.

I looked into his amazingly bright baby blue eyes.

"You should have control over your life. And no matter how much your mom yells at you, she can't do anything about it." He kissed my forehead. "It's good to express yourself, even if everyone else is telling you it's not. So be proud of who you are and what you wear. You hear me?"

I nodded.

He kissed the tip of my nose. "Good." He checked the time on his watch. "You should probably go to sleep. He looked down at what I was wearing. "So this is the outfit Em wouldn't let me see."

I laughed through my tears. "Yeah."

He brushed my tears away with his thumb. "You look amazing. Don't worry, I'm good at acting. Emily won't suspect that I saw it before I was suppose to."

I laughed again and hugged him. "Thanks for coming over."

"I'm glad I did. I wouldn't want you to have a nervous breakdown or something."

"I was about to."

"Just call me if you want me to come over, no matter how late it is."

"I will." I got off his lap and walked into my closet to change into my pajamas, hanging up my outfit where I would remember it. I didn't want to leave my room, in case my mom was waiting to hunt me down so I decided against brushing my teeth.

After I was in my pajamas I walked back over to Billy, who was still sitting on my bed. He pulled me down onto his lap. It took a lot of willpower not to squeal, otherwise my mom would know he was in the house.

He kissed the side of my neck and then rested his chin on my shoulder. "It's really late. You should go to sleep," he said yet again.

"Don't leave," I pleaded.

"I won't until you fall asleep. How's that?"

I smiled. "Better."

I crawled under the covers, pulling them up to my chin. Billy lay down next to me on the bed, his arm around my shoulders. I put my head on his chest. We just lay there in silence, listening to the other's breathing.

After at least half an hour had passed, Billy asked in a voice barely above a whisper, "You want me to sing."

"That'd be nice," I said, stifling a yawn.

He thought for a minute. "Well, this is kind of a random song. But it always calms me down and it's The Beatles. So, here goes." He started singing softly.

_Hey Jude_

_Don't make it bad_

_Take a sad song_

_And make it better_

_Remember _

_To let her into your heart_

_Then you can start_

_To make it better_

I liked the song. I liked Billy's singing even more. I felt my eyelids close as Billy continued singing. The last thing I remember before dreams took over was Billy kissing my lips gently and then saying, "Night Jennifer. I love you."

"Love you too, Billy," I mumbled.

When I woke up the next morning, he was gone.

I got ready for school quickly, grabbed a banana for breakfast and then headed out to the bus stop. All the girls squealed and commented on my outfit and my hair. I caught a few guys staring. I smiled. I could get used to the attention.

The bus came within the next few minutes and I saw Billy sitting in the back, alone. Emily was talking to Goth Boy, just like she said she would, and he was smiling for a change. I caught a few sentences from their conversation as I walked past them. He was saying, "No way! You listen to Silverstein?"

"Who doesn't? They're fucking amazing!" was her reply.

I walked to the back of the bus and slid into the empty seat next to Billy.

He smiled down at me as soon as he saw me. I kissed him and smiled. "Hi Billy."

"Hey Jennifer." He smiled back. "So, how many people liked your outfit and new hair?"

"A lot."

"That's cool."

"Yeah. It is."

He looped his arm around my waist and we spent the rest of the ride in comfortable silence, despite the whispering coming from Missy Meany, obviously jealous that I was sitting next to Billy Loomer, instead of her. I laughed silently to myself.

When we got off the bus, we stood in front of the school for a few minutes. Billy looked at me. "So? You ready to go public?"

I kissed him and then held my hand out. "Ready when you are."

He grinned and took my hand, leading the way inside the school.

We were met with gasps and looks of surprise. Billy shocked everyone even more by letting go of my hand and wrapping his arm around my waist.

We walked over to Ned and Cookie, who were hanging out by Cookie's locker. Ned immediately did a double take. "I didn't think you two would actually go public!" He exclaimed.

I smirked. "Well shows how smart you are. By the way, I'm still gonna kick your ass for what happened on Saturday."

"Oh shit."

The bell rang, signaling the start of school. "I need to go get my stuff for first period," I told Billy. "See you at lunch." I smiled and kissed him, partly just to freak Ned out. "Bye."

"Bye Jennifer." He walked off in the direction of his own locker.

Ned was frozen in place, which always happens to him when he's freaked out. I laughed to myself again as I made my way over to my locker.

Emily ran up to me, squealing. "Well, you seem... hyper today," I commented.

"I talked to him!" She squealed.

"Goth boy?"

"Actually he's not all the 'goth'. He doesn't listen to the right music. He's a goth emo! And his name's Pete."

"Cool. So, what'd you guys talk about?" We started walking together.

"Music mostly. It all started when I got on the bus and saw his shirt, it was a Dead Milkmen shirt, who I love! So we started talking about the music we listen to, which is the same stuff. He asked me if he could sit with me at lunch, so he could talk to me some more." She squealed again. "This is so rawsome!"

"Rawsome?" I asked.

"The Dollyrots made it up. It's rad plus awesome, which equals Rawsome. This stuff also includes Saucesome, which is from the show on Fuse, The Sauce."

"Interesting." We were at my classroom now. "See you at lunch, Emily."

She hugged me and then walked off to her own class.

Lunch came around quickly and I hurried down to the cafeteria. Emily and Pete were sitting at the usual table, alone, talking. I walked over to the table and sat down. Emily glanced up and smiled. "Hey Jennifer! This is Pete."

He looked at me, with a half-smile. "Hi," he said quietly. He was really shy around people other than Emily. He even seemed to be shy around his friends... I looked around. Where were his friends anyways? They all normally stuck together. I spotted them sitting at a table by themselves, glaring at Pete.

Emily and Pete turned in their seats, following my line of vision. Pete turned back around. "Yeah. They're kinda pissed off that I'm not sitting with them. They think I'm abandoning them." He rolled his eyes. "Like I can't make new fucking friends. Whatever. They don't do anything interesting anyways. We don't even like the same music. And none of them play an instrument." His hands were clenched into fists.

Emily put a hand on his shoulder. "Dude. Calm down. You need new friends. That's understandable."

Emily obviously learned how to calm people down from Billy because Pete had unclenched his fists and had relaxed a little. Emily asked him, "So, you play an instrument?"

"Guitar."

"Oh my god! No way! So do I! How long?"

"Four years. You?"

"About five years. Ha! You got pwned!"

They laughed about that while I wondered where everyone else was. Just as I starting wondering, Billy sat down next to me with a lunch tray and gave me a hug.

I hugged him back. "I was starting to wonder where you were."

"There was a really long ass line today. Bigby and Cooke are still waiting."

"Thanks for the update, which reminds me. I still need to kick Ned's ass."

Emily interrupted. "I can kick his ass for you!"

I laughed. "Thanks but no thanks. It's more fun to do it myself."

She shrugged. "Ok then." She turned back to Pete. "So, four years, huh?"

He nodded. She told him, "We should start a band. And we can name it Suicidal Penguins."

Pete laughed. Billy asked, "Can I play drums on the shiny new drumset I'm gonna get on my birthday???"

Emily laughed. "Oh course you can!" She looked at Pete. "So, Petey, what do you say?"

He smiled at her shyly. "That'd be awesome."

"Bolokashneeky!"

We all looked at her questioningly when she said that. She sighed exaggeratedly. "Bolokashneeky is used to describe a feeling. Torry from The Donnas made it up. So I'm saying bolokashneeky 'cause I'm happy!"

"Oooooooh," we said.

Ned and Cookie came up to the table at this point. I stood up. "Ned, I'm so gonna kick your fucking ass!"

He panicked and ran out of the cafeteria, me chasing after him.

**A/N**: Ok, so that was a really long and dragged out chapter but I couldn't find a good ending point so it ended up being this length... The song verse I put in this chapter was from "Hey Jude" by the wonderful and talented and totally awesome Beatles! Oh and hopefully you guys remember Goth Boy. He's the blond one in the goth clique. Yes? No? Whatevs. Just rewatch an episode where the Goth kids show up... Next chapter's in Emily's POV.

Translations: Totes Totally, Most Deffs Most definitely, emo-ite someone who's emo. Whatevs whatever. All others were explained I think. PM me is you have any questions.

**DISCLAIMER**: I don't own NDSSG. The Beatles own the song verse. Torry from The Donnas owns the word "bolokashneeky"... and that's it.


	6. Secrets, movies, and Mountain Dew

**(Emily's POV)**

Pete's awesome! We have so much in common: we listen to the same bands, we both play guitar, we both wear eyeliner... I think I have a crush on him... I've never had a boyfriend before and I don't know what to do!

I asked Jennifer about it after lunch. We finished early and went out to the snack area.

After we sat down at a table, Jennifer asked me, "So, what'd you wanna talk about?"

"I think I have a crush on Pete!" I blurted out.

"That's great! So, what're you gonna do now?"

"That's just it! I don't know! I've never had a boyfriend so I'm totally lost when it comes to this stuff! What do I do????"

"Well, I will tell you this. Pete really likes you. I can tell. Who knows? Maybe he'll ask you out."

"You think so?"

She shrugged. "Maybe. And can I just say, you seemed a lot more confident in the cafeteria."

"Yeah... but I'm good at hiding things. I've been good at it since my dad got arrested. No one but the teachers at this school suspects or knows anything."

"Ooooh. Got it. Sorry I mentioned anything." She looked guilty.

"It's not your fault." I smiled at her. "Thanks Jennifer. I've never had a friend that I could talk to about stuff like boys or anything before. It means a lot."

She smiled back. "Well, then I'm glad that we're friends."

The bell rang. I said, "C'mon. We'd better get to class."

"I'll see you later. I'm gonna go say bye to Billy."

"Ok then. See you later." I hugged her and then walked off towards my locker.

Pete was standing near my locker, head down as always. He looked up when he heard me approach. "Oh hi Emily," he said shyly.

"Hey Pete. What're you doing here?"

"I wanted to... ask you something."

I looked at him. "Yeah...?"

He took a deep breath and looked at the floor. "You uh, wanna get a slice of pizza with me today after school?" He raised his head to look at me.

I just blinked for a minute before saying, "Uh yeah! That sounds great!"

He smiled. "Really?"

"Yeah." I smiled back shyly.

"Cool. Um, meet you out front after school?"

"Sure. Sounds great."

"Ok then. See you after school."

"See ya!"

He walked around the corner and I opened my locker, looked around, and stuck my head in, squealing like a little girl. I was so psyched!

I pulled my head out of the locker, grabbed my stuff for the next period, and then walked off to class, a huge smile on my face the whole time.

Ned limped up to me before I reached my class. "You seem happy..."

"I just got asked out."

"Cool. By who?"

"You know goth boy?"

"Which one?"

"Blond one."

"Yeah. I know him."

"Well, his name's Pete and he asked me if I wanted to get a slice of pizza with him after school."

"And that classifies as a date?"

"Yeah."

"Ok then." He smiled at me. "Have fun."

He grimaced and limped off. I called after him. "What happened to you?"

"Moze tackled me."

I nodded. "Sucks for you. Next time don't spy on her."

He limped right back over to me. "It wasn't spying. Cookie and I were simply just checking up on her."

"Which translates to spying on her."

"Whatever."

I laughed and hugged him. "I'll see you later."

"Bye Emily."

The rest of the day passed by quickly and as soon as the bell rang, I walked out to where the buses were and sat down at one of the old lunch tables. Jennifer came a couple minutes later and sat down next to me. "What're you so happy about?"

"Pete asked me out," I said with a huge grin on my face.

"That's great!" she said, hugging me. "What'd I tell you?"

I rolled my eyes, "Fine. You were right. Where's Billy anyways?"

"He had to stay behind to talk to the teacher. He'll be out in a minute."

"Cool. Make sure he doesn't burn the school down, would ya?"

She laughed. "I'll make sure. Have fun."

"I'll call you as soon as I get home and tell you all about it."

"What're we talking about?" Billy asked. He'd just come over, standing next to Jennifer.

"Emily's first date," Jennifer answered for me.

Billy just blinked. Jennifer laughed and led him towards the buses. She called over her shoulder, "He's coming this way!"

I stood up as Pete waked over to the table. He had taken off that leather jacket he always wore. He looked better without it.

He smiled shyly at me. "So, ready to go?"

"Yep." I smiled back.

We walked to this small pizzeria near the school where a lot of students hang out. We sat at a booth in a corner and ordered two slices of pizza and just talked. For like two hours!

I asked him, "So, what grade are you in exactly?"

"Eighth. You're a sixth grader, right?"

"Yep. Next question, what kind of guitar do you have?"

"Right now all I got is a pretty good quality Squire acoustic and an Epiphone Les Paul. I'm saving up for a Gibson SG. What about you?"

"I have an amazing purple Cosmic Sparkle Daisy Rock guitar. I love it! I'm saving up for a Billie Joe Armstrong Signature Series Sunburst Les Paul Junior."

"Awesome."

"Yeah. I know. But the damn thing costs fifteen hundred bucks. But I love the sixties style neck." I took a bite of my pizza and then asked. "So, how old are you?"

"Fourteen. You?"

"Twelve, almost thirteen."

"Cool..." He stared down at his pizza and bit into it.

I looked at him for a minute. "You know, I think you'd look really good with black hair." His bangs were cut like Pete Wentz's, sideswept, and they were long and fell in front of his eye. All that was missing for him was jet black hair.

"I was gonna dye it but I can't do it by myself."

"I can help. I'm good with hair."

"Really? You'd do that for me?"

"Of course! Anyone who loves the Dead Milkmen is worthy to have me help them with their hair."

He laughed. "Thanks."

"No problem. And you also look better without that leather jacket."

"Then I'm glad I lost it." He smiled at me. "By the way, that hoodie looks cute on you."

I looked down at my jacket. It was my black and white scenester striped hoodie. I said, "Thanks." But I thought, 'Zomfg! He thinks I look cute! ' I'd have to blog about this later...

We sat in silence for a minute before I said, "When do you want me to help you dye your hair?"

"Can you come over to my house tomorrow?"

"Yeah. I can do that."

"Cool."

We sat in that pizzeria for hours! Even after we finished our pizza! It was six o'clock by the time any of even bothered to check the time. Pete checked his watch. "Shit. I'd better get you home. Your mom must be worried sick."

"She doesn't care how late I stay out as long as I'm back before midnight."

"Cool. Anyways, we should get going."

He paid and then we grabbed our stuff and walked out of the restaurant. We just walked around town for a while, Pete kicking a pebble continuously. I said, "Thanks for the pizza."

He looked up. "Oh no problem." He smiled. "So, where do you live?"

"Not far." I looked up at the sky, it looked like rain. And sure enough, I felt a raindrop on my forehead.

Pete looked at me. "It's raining."

The rain was coming down heavily. We didn't care. We both like rain.

We moved under an awning, waiting for the downpour to let up. Pete looked at me. He didn't say anything. I smiled at him and grabbed his hand. He didn't pull back.

It wasn't long before the downpour was just a light drizzle. Pete and I continued walking to my house, still holding hands.

He looked at me. "Emily? I know I've only known you for a day, but I like you. I've never felt this comfortable talking to anyone else before." He blushed. "You probably think I'm weird."

"No I don't." I smiled at him. "I like you too. You're the first guy who's even acknowledged that I exist."

He smiled back. "Would you wanna go out with me? Like to a movie? I wanna get to know you better."

"Sure. I'd love that. I wanna get to know you too."

We were at my house in minutes. Suddenly, I was embarrassed. I never let anyone see my house. It's so small and old...

I said, "Um. Yeah. I know it's small but-"

Pete cut me off by saying. "I don't care how big your house is. I like you as a person. It doesn't matter how much money you have or anything like that."

All I could do was smile. He walked me to the front door and then said, "Well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yeah. See you tomorrow."

He leaned down and kissed me on the cheek before walking away, waving over his shoulder. I shouted, "Bye Pete" over my shoulder, before walking through the front door.

Billy and Jennifer were cuddled up on the couch, watching TV. They turned their heads when they heard me come in. Jennifer smiled and said, "So...? How'd it go?"

"He said he likes me, asked me out on a real date, and kissed me on the cheek!" I squealed.

Billy said, "Go get changed before you get sick."

I looked down at myself. I hadn't even noticed that I was dripping wet. I rolled my eyes at Billy and then walked into my room to change into dry clothes.

I grabbed my pink cotton pajama pants with guitars and lightning bolts on them, a black tank top, and my favorite black Adeline Street cardigan and threw them on. Then I blow dried my hair and put it up in a ponytail, washed off my already smudged makeup, and then walked back out to the living room. I flopped into the easy chair next to the couch. "So, what're you two watching?"

Billy turned the TV off. "Nothing really. There's nothing good on now."

Jennifer said, "Tell me everything! I want details."

And that was it. It was strictly girl talk from there on out. Billy was confused as hell.

Eventually, he interrupted us to say, "My brain hurts."

I rolled my eyes and continued talking to Jennifer. "And then he told me that he likes me!" I squealed.

"I knew he liked you!"

"Uh-huh. And then he walked me home before kissing my cheek!"

We squealed about that for a minute before Billy whined, "I feel so alone!"

Jennifer laughed and gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "I'm sorry."

He kissed her. "It's ok."

I waited patiently for their moment to pass just like I always do...

I hung out a lot with Pete as the week went on. We went to the movies, I helped him dye his hair... I felt like I'd known him my whole life.

One Monday night, I was sitting in bed, reading, when I heard something that sounded like music. I just shook my head, figuring it was Billy. But then I remembered that he was hanging out at Jennifer's house. Plus, the music was coming from outside... I got up and walked over to the window. It was Pete, holding a portable stereo in his hands.

I opened the window and heard Hawthorne Heights's "Niki FM" blasting, "I know!!! I'm outside of your window with my radio!" I smiled down at Pete. He smiled back and lowered the stereo to the ground. I climbed out the window (I do live in a one story house) and landed on the wet grass. I asked, "What are you doing here?"

He lowered the volume. "Like I said, I really like you. And this is my way of showing you."

"That is so sweet!"

He grabbed my hand and looked me right in the eye and sang, "I'm outside of your window with my radio. You are the only station. You play the song I know. You are the song I know."

I was speechless. He turned the stereo off and handed me the CD inside. "I made you a mix," he said shyly.

"Thank you. I love it!" He had decorated the front with Sharpie and titled it, "I Don't Know How to Tell You My Real Feelings For You; Hope This Helps."

I glomped him; threw my arms around his neck and practically knocked him over. He wrapped his arms around my waist. "Glad you like it."

"I love it."

Before I even realized what was happening, Pete brushed his lips against mine briefly before letting go of me. "I should go." He smiled at me.

I was speechless again. He laughed. "That was the reaction I was hoping for." He was about to walk away but I grabbed his arm and pulled him in for a proper kiss, one that lasted for more than a millisecond.

When we broke apart he said, "Wow."

I smiled. "So... what now?"

"I was hoping that you'd be my girlfriend."

"Well then consider this a yes." I kissed him again.

He hugged me close to him and whispered, "See you on the bus tomorrow." Then he let go of me and then walked off with his stereo.

I climbed back through my window and closed it before looking down at my new mix CD. I fingered the letters written on it and then grabbed my CD player and put the CD in. Then I put my headphones on and pressed play.

**The track listing was**:

1."Niki FM" - Hawthorne Heights

2."This Is For Real" - Motion City Soundtrack

3."Cupid's Chokehold" - Gym Class Heroes

4."Crushcrushcrush" - Paramore

5."Hey There Delilah" - Plain White T's

6."Hero/Heroine" - Boys Like Girls

7."I've Just Seen A Face" - The Beatles

8."Summer of '98" - The Secret Handshake

9."Here (In Your Arms)" - Hellogoodbye

10."Must Have Done Something Right" - Relient K

11."I'd Do Anything" - Simple Plan

12."Thunder" - Boys Like Girls

13."All You Need Is Love" - The Beatles

14."I Will Always Love You" - The Cure

15."XO" - Fall Out Boy

16."All My Loving" - The Beatles

17."Luv Addict" - Family Force 5

18."2000 Light Years Away" - Green Day

19."I Wanna Hold Your Hand" - The Beatles

I listened to it four times as I drifted off to sleep with a smile on my face.

I woke up early the next day and spent an hour just trying to pick out what to wear. I decided on a pair of dark wash, skinny, peg leg jeans with a pink and black hound's tooth baby doll tee. Then I picked out a pair of black and red skimmers, a black and white checkered seatbelt belt, my striped scenester hoodie, and a black and red polka dotted headband.

After I was dressed, I ate breakfast and then brushed my teeth before applying my makeup, a smoky eye using four shades of eyeshadow ranging from black to white, with a little eyeliner. Then I put on some lip gloss before grabbing my polka dot tote bag, which now served as my school bag, and heading out the door.

The bus was just pulling up when I got to the bus stop. I hopped on and saw Pete sitting in the back, listening to his iPod, his hood pulled up and head down. I smiled and slid into the seat next to him. I poked him in the side and his head snapped up. He broke into a smile when he saw me and gave me a hug. He pulled his ear buds out. "Hey Em."

"Hey Petey." I kissed him on the cheek and grabbed his hand, resting my head on his shoulder. His hoodie was really soft.

I heard Missy whispering about us. I didn't care. Pete told me, "You look cute today."

"Thanks." I smiled. "Your hair looks sick today."

He shook his head, making his bangs fall even more in front of his face. "I straightened my bangs 'til they were perfect today."

"I can tell."

The bus stopped at school and we walked into the building, holding hands. Pete immediately got called "fag" and "gay" but he ignored them. It most likely had to do with the fact that he was wearing a black, slim fit Paramore tee ('cause he's really skinny and scrawny and can pull that look off) and girls jeans.

I whipped around to glare at the fucktards who had called my boyfriend a fag. I flipped them off and said, "If you ever call him that again, I will personally find out where you live and choke the fucking life out of you, dick!"

Pete wrapped his arm around me as we kept walking. "Thanks for that."

I kissed his cheek. "No problem. They're just jealous 'cause you're actually hot."

We met Billy, Jennifer, Ned, and Cookie at Ned's locker. His arm around me was the first thing Jennifer noticed.

"Hey Em. Can I talk to you for a minute?"

I said,"Sure." Pete let me go.

We walked into a different hallway, where Jennifer grabbed my shoulders and asked, "What's going on with you two?"

"Well..." I told her all about last night.

"Oh my God! That's so sweet!"

"I know!" I squealed.

We walked back over to the group and Pete immediately walked up behind me, wrapping his arms around me and resting his chin on my shoulder. I looked at him and smiled.

The bell rang all too soon and I had to say bye to Pete. I turned around so I was facing him. He hugged me and gave me a quick kiss on the lips before pinching my side and making me squeal.

I poked him before he could walk away. He just laughed and tickled me again. After a brief tickle war, we finally said bye for real. He kissed me and then walked off to his first period class.

I walked in the opposite direction with Jennifer. She told me, "You two are so cute together!"

I smiled. "Thanks."

It seemed to take forever for lunch to come around. But as soon as that lunch bell rang, I was out of the classroom and off to the cafeteria. I stopped when I saw Pete arguing with one of the goth girls in an empty hallway. I eavesdropped and heard Pete say, "I don't give a shit about what you think! I love her! And I'm allowed to have other fucking friends!" Then he walked off and almost ran into me. He smiled when he noticed me. "Hey Em." He hugged me.

I hugged him back and asked, "What was that about?"

"One of my old friends. They don't think you're good enough for me." He rolled his eyes and looped an arm around my waist, leading me to the cafeteria.

"They don't think I'm good enough?" It hurt that his friends didn't think I was worthy to date their friend.

Pete noticed my expression and stepped in front of me, blocking my path. He started singing quietly, "Your voice was the soundtrack of my summer. Do you know you're unlike any other? You'll always be my thunder. And I said, your eyes are the brightest of all the colors. I don't wanna ever love another. You'll always be my thunder. So bring on the rain. Bring on the thunder."

I blinked, recognizing the song and what he was implying with it. "You love me?"

He nodded. "Of course I love you. And I don't care what those fucktards think or if they think I'm crazy because I'm crazy about you."

I smiled at him. "I love you too."

He smiled back at me and kissed me before grabbing my hand while we walked to the cafeteria. He asked me, "Feel better now?"

I nodded.

"Glad to hear it."

We got to the cafeteria where Billy, Jennifer, Ned, Cookie, Lisa, and Coconut Head were already sitting. Jennifer asked me, "What took you guys so long?"

Pete said, "I was just burning some bridges between me and a few old friends."

Everyone just looked confused at that but Pete smiled at me secretly and mouthed, "I love you."

I grinned at him.

In the middle of lunch, Pete told me, "Oh shit! I can't believe I forgot."

"Forgot what?"

"Paramore and Boys Like Girls are touring together and they're coming here this month. Wanna go with me?"

"Of course!"

"Great! I'll buy your ticket for you."

"Really? You would do that for me?"

"Yeah. Tickets aren't that expensive."

"Ok then. If it's not too much trouble..."

"It's not."

I hugged him. He blushed, which was a first. I said, "Awww. You're so cute when you're embarrassed."

Lisa said, "Oh my god! I love your shirt, Emily!"

I looked down at my shirt. "Oh. Thanks."

The bell rang, signaling the end of lunch. I hugged Pete and kissed him on the cheek before going with Jennifer and Lisa to our next classes.

Lisa squealed and said, "Oh my god! You and Goth Boy are so cute together!"

I smiled. "His name's Pete. And thanks Lisa. You and Cookie would make a cute couple."

She made a face. "He's too..." She paused, trying to find a word.

Jennifer suggested, "Immature?"

"Yeah! Well, yes and no. I just feel like he only likes me 'cause I'm not the 'old' Lisa anymore. He just likes me for my looks."

"Touche," I said. I'd seen Lisa's picture in Billy's yearbook last year. She'd definitely changed. And from what I knew about Cookie, he only liked girls for their looks.

She continued. "I wanna a find a guy who treats me like Pete treats you." She looked at Jennifer and added, "Or Billy teats you."

I put my hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry. You'll find the right guy one day. Coconut Head really seems to like you."

She smiled. "Thanks Emily."

We got to my next class and I said bye to Jennifer and Lisa. But not before saying, "We should have a sleepover!"

Lisa's reply was, "That's an awesome idea! We could have it at my house! And we could have ice cream and pizza and stay up late watching movies and talking about boys!"

We both squealed and hugged each other. We looked at Jennifer. "You in?" I asked.

She smiled. "Of course I am! I'll invite Suzie too!"

I squealed again. "I'll bring the movies. We're watching 'Rent', 'Moulin Rouge', 'Hairspray', and 'The Phantom of the Opera'. Is that okay?"

They nodded. I squealed once again and walked into my classroom singing "Ladies Choice" from 'Hairspray'. "Oh, hey little girl on a spending spree. I don't come cheap but the kisses come free. On closer inspection I'm sure that you'll agree..."

* * *

The day of the sleepover came really quickly. 

I rang the doorbell to Lisa's house. Then I turned around, waving at my mom before she drove away. It was late, well at least dark out.

Lisa answered the door a minute later, Jennifer and Suzie behind her.

"Hey Emily! I'm so glad you came!" Lisa said, hugging me. "You can put your stuff in my room. My parents are out of town by the way. We have the whole house to ourselves!" I followed everyone upstairs and dropped my stuff on the floor of Lisa's room. There was a lot of pink...

Jennifer asked, "So, what should you do now?"

Suzie said, "Let's just sit around and talk about boys and gossip!"

"Sounds good to me," I said with a smile.

Lisa and Suzie sat on the bed with Jennifer and I on the floor. We put on "The Phantom of the Opera" while we talked.

Suzie started talking about Seth. "Oh my god! He is _sooo_ hot!"

I snorted. "No he's not. Plus, he's a fucking idiot!"

Lisa said. "I'm gonna order a pizza. What kind do you guys want?"

"Mushrooms."

Everyone looked at me. Suzie said, "Ewww!"

"I happen to be a vegetarian. And I like mushrooms!" I said, rolling my eyes.

Jennifer, being the practical one, answered, "Why don't we get half mushroom and half pepperoni. Sound good to everyone?"

We all looked at each other and nodded. Lisa went downstairs to order the pizza.

Suzie grabbed a pillow, leaning forward. "So, I heard from Missy that someone at school, their dad got arrested."

I froze. "W-who?"

"She didn't tell me. Just that she overheard someone talking about it. But anyways, isn't that crazy?"

I forced a nervous laugh. "Yeah, crazy." The room was spinning. I think I was having a panic attack.

Jennifer, realizing what was happening, asked me, "Em? Are you okay?"

I shook my head and started hyperventilating. All of a sudden the room went black.

"Em? Emily? Wake up."

I felt someone shaking me. I opened my eyes and found myself still in Lisa's bedroom. Suzie and Jennifer were looking at me, concerned. Suzie asked, "Are you okay? You just fainted!"

I took a deep breath. "I-I'm fine."

Jennifer asked me, "You sure? It looked like you had a panic attack. There something you wanna talk about."

I looked straight at Jennifer. "Missy knows. She must have overheard our conversation!" I felt tears welling up in my eyes.

Lisa chose that moment to walk in. "What happened?" She asked, seeing me in tears.

Jennifer said, "Em fainted." She grabbed me by the arm. "Let's go outside and talk."

She led me out of the room, closing the door behind her. We walked to the end of the hallway and sat on the top stair. She asked me, "You okay?"

I shook my head again, tears streaming down my face. "Missy knows! She fucking knows! Now everyone at school probably knows and now no one's gonna fucking treat me the same!"

Jennifer hugged me. "Shhh. It's okay. It won't be so different."

"Yes it will." I looked up at her. "I never told you this, but he was abusive. My dad hit me and Billy. And he molested me. When word gets out about_that_ everyone's gonna feel _sorry_ for me. It'll all be a pity party. And I don't want that. I just wanna be normal."

Jennifer was silent for a minute. "He molested you?"

I nodded. "And I've never been the same around guys ever since. The only guy besides Billy that I've ever felt comfortable with is Pete. 'Cause I know Pete would never hurt me." I wiped the tears off of my face. I took a deep breath. "I just wanna be normal. Why won't anyone let me be normal? I don't wanna be the girl that everyone feels sorry for. I don't want pity!"

Jennifer didn't say anything. She couldn't. What do you say to someone after you find out a past like that?

After I had calmed down, Jennifer and I walked back to Lisa's room. No one said anything. "Anyone wanna watch 'Rent'?" I asked, trying to be act normal.

Everyone agreed, guessing that I didn't want to talk abot what just happened. So I replaced "The Phantom of the Opera" with "Rent". We all settled down on the bed to watch. I sang every single song and flipped off Benny a bunch of times. I love that movie. "To handcrafted beers made in local breweries. To yoga, to yogurt, to rice and beans and cheese..."

Towards the middle of "Rent", the pizza arrived and we ate while finishing the movie. Suzie even tired a piece of mushroom pizza.

After "Rent", we got into our PJ's and put on "Moulin Rouge". I was able to forget about what had happened. That movie always cheers me up, then depresses me by the end. But that's a different story. I mean, Ewan McGregor is such an amazing singer, it's impossible not to love that movie.

After "Moulin Rouge" ended, not only I, but Suzie and Lisa as well, were bawling our eyes out and Jennifer was forced to play "Hairspray" so we'd cheer up.

"'Cause you can't stop the beat! Ever since this old world began, a woman found out if she shook it she could shake up a man! So now I'm gonna shake and shimmy it the best that I can today!" I belted out towards the end of the movie. This was the loudest I had sung the whole night and now everyone was looking at me. "I _like_ this movie," I said, defensively.

Everyone else just shrugged. By now it was one in the morning. We all set up our sleeping bags and just sat and gossiped and talked about boys some more.

Suzie started the whole conversation with, "Jennifer. You are so _lucky_!"

"Why?"

"Duh! You're dating Loomer!"

"I'm not a lesbian," I said.

Suzie looked at me funny and I rolled my eyes and explained. "Everyone always calls him Loomer. I'm trying to break that habit for everyone 'cause I'm also a Loomer."

Suzie shrugged. "Fine. Jennifer, you're dating _Billy_!" She looked as if to say, 'There? Happy?'

Lisa agreed. "You_are_ lucky, Jennifer."

She blushed. "He is _really_ sweet."

"He wasn't when I dated him," Suzie said, rolling her eyes.

"Maybe 'cause you controlled every little thing he ever did," I said matter-of-factly.

"Oh yeah? Well... your face!"

We all laughed about that, me laughing the hardest 'cause by now I had finished drinking three, two liter bottles of Mountain Dew all by myself that I had started drinking during "Rent". (A/N: my friend actually did that with Coke once. XD)

By two in the morning, Lisa was falling asleep, Jennifer was half-awake, Suzie was awake but out of it, and I was still awake, shaking after all that Mountain Dew, and laughing hysterically at something stupid like the wallpaper.

Jennifer took her cell phone out. "You guys wanna say hi to Billy and wake him up?"

We all shrugged and she called him. "Hey Billy. You're not asleep?"

She held the phone out. I practically screamed, "Merry Christmas bitches!"

I heard him laugh, 'cause Jennifer had put him on speaker phone. "Em? How much Mountain Dew did you have?" He asked.

I giggled. "Three, two liter bottles." I was seriously, like, high.

"No more caffeine and sugar for you!"

Jennifer took him off speaker phone and they talked for a little bit. "I love you too. Night."

She hung up and we all fell asleep. Well, I stayed up shaking, 'til the high wore off and I passed out. I hadn't forgotten what had happened today, but I was just glad that everyone was able to forget about it. I figured I would deal with it later in school.

* * *

**A/N**: Random as hell, I know, at the end. But I wanted to end on a happy note. Not a depressing angsty topic. So, yeah... Mountain Dew. It's a lifesaver! lol Yeah... Emily at the end of this chapter is me after just get this... HALF a friggin can of Mountain Dew!!! My friends normally drink the rest -cough-Zero-cough-. lol

**Disclaimer**: Well, I borrowed a lot of shit for this chapter so I'm just gonna say. I own none of the songs, bands, movies, or shows (NDSSG) used in this fic. So, there we go. Oh, and I do not own the line, "Merry Christmas Bitches!"Jesse L. Martin does.


End file.
